Spring-wheel.



w. B. KERRICK.

S RING WHEEL Patented Aug. 21, 1917.

illlillll A PPLICATlON FILED APR. 10, i915- To all whom it may. concern i inn STATES PATENT onnron.

WALTER B. Knnarcx, or LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA.

srnrne-wnnnr..

.Beit known that I, WALTER B. Knnnron,

a citizen of theUnited States, residing at Los Angeles, in the county of Los Angeles 1 and State of California, have invented new and useful Improvements in Spring-lVheels,

ofwhich the following is a specification.

,This invention relates to a spring wheel and particularlypertains toithe rim con stru ction'thereof. v 1 1 It is the object of this invention to provide a wheel in which shocks imposed upon the wheel rim and loads carried upon the wheel hub will be cushioned, on a series of spring memhersinterposed between inner. and outer relatively movable wheel. rimsrand which permits theus'e of solid cushiontires for silence and traction in lieu of pneumatic tires'but with" substantially the same resilient qualities inherent in the latter. 1

Another object 's to provlde a wheel rim. embodying a series of horizontally extending coiled springs with simple means for detachably 'mountlng the terminals of; the springs.

Another object is to provide a connection betweenthe springs and the outer wheel rim whereby the .rlatterfmay be removed and replaced without disconnecting the springs.

A further'object is to provide a construe (ion for" the/ inner and outer wheel rims which willadapt them to being formedof sheethimetal'rthusi rendering the structure simple and 'economicalin manufacture.

1 Other objects will appear hereinafter.

The invention isillustrated in the accompanyingldrawings in which: 4 i i t Figure 1 is a view of a wheel constructed in: accordance with this invention, as seen in side elevation, with'parts broken away.

r Fig. as an enlargedtdetail vertical section of the wheel as seen on the line 22 of t Fig. 1'.

Specification of Letters Patent. P t ted A g. 21, 1917. Application filed April 10, 1916 Serial No. 90,227. y

iFig.'5-is a detail showing a modified form of the detachable spring connection.

.More specifically, 5 indicates a wheel hub fitted with spokes 6 on which a felly 7 is mounted. I The hub, spokesand felly may be of any suitable construction but are here shown as comprising those of the ordinary wooden wheel. .Mountedon thelfelly 7 is a metallicrim 8 and affixed to the rim 8 is a pair of annular; members 9 and 10 of arcuate cross section and arranged back to back with their curved portions, extendingin opposite directions, Formed on the adjacent faces of the members 9 and 10 at their outer edges are opposed annular channels 11 and 12 bers 9fand 10 and the latter are detachably.

secured together by screws or bolts 14:- The outer edges of the members 9 and lOare formed with transverse slots 15 and 16 across which the ring 13JeXtends thus exposing portions of the ring throughout the periphery of the members 9 and 10. A central annular web is thus formed around the wheel felly. with a series of slots spanned by a member consisting of the ring 13 which serves as an attachment toreceive the hooked ends 17 of a series of coiled springs 18; a series of springs ls being detachably connected to the web in this manner at suitable intervals throughout its periphery, which springs are arranged so that adjacent springs will extend on opposite sides" of the web, as particularly shown in Fig. 4:. I

The outer-ends of. the, springs 18 are formed with hooks 19-adapted to detachably the webon the wheel ,felly in such position,

that the outer wheel rim 24 will be spaced from the web, and therings 20 will be in line with thering 13 and so that the springs 18 will extend in a substantially horizontal direction The-flange rings. 22 and. 23 arev formed with radial slots 25 on their inner edges which are spanned by the rings and permit the hooked ends of the springs 18 being introduced into engagement with the rings. The flange rings, 2:2 and 23 are preferably.dnhouritably connected to 1 the rim 24; screws 26 being here shown as a means for effecting such connection. The rim 24 is formed with integral side'flanges 27 to form a peripheral channel on its outer face adapted to receive a solid cushion tire 28.

Extendingacross the outer face of the wheel is a face plate 29 which closes the space encircled by the flange-ring+22g the face plate 29 being detachably connected at its edges to the 'flang'e ring by means of screws 80. A backplate 31"is eon1iectedto theflange ring=23and is'formedfwith a central opening 32* through which the wheel spindle33 extends. Th'e margin of the opening 32 is spaced from the Wheel spindle and theopening thus formed-is'closed by-a plate 34 slidably engaging the wheelhub 5 and connected to the latter by means oftorsional springs 35 which are attached to the hub and to the plate34E and exertan inward piill on the latter-normally maintaining it in close contact with the inner-edge of the back plate 31.

*From' the foregoingit will be seen that the outer wheel'rimmay have radial,- transverse and peripheral ;movement in relation 7 to the inner wheel -rim,'or a combination of any of "these m0'vements,"its movement in either "of these "directions being -'yie ldably opposed bythe'springs 18, thus providingia re'silient'tread for the wheel having s1'1bstan tia'lly the same resilient, characteristics of a pneumatic tire.

By the construction here "shown the springs 18may be removed separately without disturbing adj acentgsp rings, by unhooking their ends from the rings 13 and "20 and if it is'desired' to-remove the outerwheel rim 24' withoutdisturbing the springs, this same from the flange rings 22- and 23.

.The rings 13 and QO'ar-e preferably split,"

as indicated at "36 and '87 in Fig. 4 'S0'a1S tO permit their being expanded or contracted to conform to their receiving channels.

" In assemblingthe wheel rim the ring 13 is placed in agroove formed by the channels 11 and 12 in the annular "members 9 and 10 whereupon the latter are secured together and'fastenedto the rim'S. "The member's9 and '10 may be secured together before mounting on the rim 8 or one of *theinembers may be-attached to the-rim before the other is connected thereto. The springs 18 are thenf hooked at their-inner ends overthe ring '13 either from the inner or l outer side thereof and arranged with, adjacent springs extending i n 'opp'os'ite directions. The rings thus formed which will permit'of universal 20 are then placed in their channels on the 6L- flange rings 22 and 23 and the outer ends of the springs 18 are engaged therewith, as shown in F 1g. 3. The outer rim Qcarrymg the tire QSmaythen be secured to the flange rings-"2 and 23.

...thesp1 'ings to the demountable rings may be employed, such, for instance, as is illustrated in Fig. 5, inv which loops 38 are mounted .on

the rings to extend through the slots and to which rings the hook ends of the springs are detachably connected. A connection is movement of the springsin relation to the rings without bindingor pinching the spring ends. s

the construction herein set forth an inner-wheel is mounted: to have cushioned universal movement within I an outer wheel; the two wheels being capable of having transverse, radial, and circumferential movement, or any combination of these movements in: relation: to each other, with any movement being cushioned by the springs.

What' I claim is: I

1. 1 11 a wheel, a pair of spaced wheel rims, anannular web on'the inner rim hav- 7 ing a slotted peripheral edge, a ring carried 9 by s'a id web spanning the slots therein, a; series of springs detachably connected to said ring and arranged with adjacent springseX-' tending on opposite sides of the web, and means for detachably connecting the outer ends of said-springs to the outer rim. V

2. In. a wheel, an =lI1116IIl1I1,-a.I1 outer rimspaced therefrom, a WBb'OIi the sinner rim formed with transverse slots, a ring carried by said web "spanning said slots, springs detachably connected to theringin said slots extending'on oppositesides of the web, flange rings carriedby the'outer rim having, slots on'their inner=edges,.and rings carried by said flange-rings to which the outer ends 110 of said springs are'detachably connected.

In a wheel, an inner rim,- an outer rim spaced therefrom, a pair- 0f. annular members connected to the inner-rim and formed with channels adjacent their outer edges and having alined transverse slots, a ring: carried=in said channels extending across the slots, coiledsprings having hooked. terminals arranged with their inner ends connectedto" said ring, flange rings carried bythe outer rim having slots on their inner edges and extending on opposite sides of the annue larmembers, and rings carried by said flange rings spanning the slots to which the outer I hooked ends of said springs are detachably connected. v i

4. In a wheel, the combination with a wheel felly, of an annulartire positioned there-around and in spaced relation to said each other as they engage alternate pairs of telly, a pair of oppositely disposed outer rings, means whereby the central ring may 10 rings adapted to lie between the felly and be detachably mounted upon the telly, and the tire, a central ringof a similar diameter means whereby the outer rings may be to the outer rings and disposed between said mounted in fixed relation to the tire.

outer rings, helical spring members adapted In testimony whereof I have signed my to detachably engage adjacent ring memname to this specification.

bers and arranged in staggered relation to WALTER B. KERRICK.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

Washington, D. 0. 

